Retort-furnace.



H. A. CARPENTER.

RETORT FURNACE. APPLICATION FILEDVJULY a. 1913.

Patented Aug. 17, 1915.

Z SHEETS-SHEET l. J I l ,fim/

H. A. CARPENTER.

RETORT FURNACE.

APPLlCATlON FILED JULY 3.1913.

1 1 50,807. Patented Au 17, 1915.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

FIG.3 ,Z 5'

WITNESSES I COLUMBIA PLANOURAPH CO.,WASHINGTON. D. c.

HENRY A. CARPENTER, OF SEWICKLEY, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR T0 BITER-CONLEY MANUFACTURING COMPANY, OF PITTiSBUEGH, PENNSYLVANIA, A CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

Ramona-Fortunes.

Specification of Letters Patent. Patented Aug, 17, 1915,

Application filed Ju1y3, 1913. Serial No. 777,215.

To all whom it may concern 7 Be it known that I, HENRY A. CARPENTER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Sewickley, in the countyof Allegheny and State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Retort-Furnaces, of which the following is a specification.

In the manufacture of gas it has been the custom heretofore to build gas retorts, or

benches of retorts, arranged in vertical rows, or series, and at appropriate distances apart horizontally from'one side of the bench structure to the other, with vertical cross walls supporting these retorts. Such cross walls have, however, in previous construction, been separated by considerable distances and designed primarily as supports for said retorts, but affording wlde free spaces'for the circulation of the prodnets of combustion between them, the width depending upon the distance apart found appropriate for affording the required support. In practice, such cross walls have ordinarily been arranged eighteen inches apart, and upward, from center. to center and the clear space between such walls has been approximately twelve to eighteen inches, which space was utilized for allowing the products of combustion from the combustion chambers to circulate around the retorts for heating them. Such spaces in common constructions of benches have varied in width, as stated, providing for free passage and circulation of such products of combustion and the heat is taken up from such products by the retorts from 0011- tact thereof with the exterior of said retorts and thus transferred to the coal in the retorts. In making gas from coal in retorts of this type a given amount of, heat is required to dispel the volatile matter from the fixed carbon and the important and controlling factor in the manufacture has been the time required to transmit this required heat through the walls of the retort to the coal.

In the use of retorts of common construction a temperature of 2200 to 2%00 degrees Fahrenheit on the outside of the retort is required to create a temperature of approximately 2000 degrees on the inside and such a temperature does not materially harm or tend to destroy the gases as they pass from the coal over the top of the mass thereof and in contact with the top of the heated retort. This workingtemperature has limited the rate of transferring heat to the coal to dispel the gas and volatilematter. In consldering this subject, and in experimenting and developing a method and apparatus to secure greater efliciency and economy in operation, I have discovered that largely improved results may be secured by storing up the heat in more condensed condition in masses of refractory material surrounding the retorts than possible by the methods heretofore practised. In my improved con: struction of apparatus a unit volume of the refractory materials heated to a temperature of approximately 2000 degrees contalns approximately six thousand times as much heat as a similar unit volume of products of combustion from the combustion chamber at the same temperature. coal involves chiefly the transference of necessary heat to, the coal, it will be readily seen that by thus storing up the heat in masses of refractory material surrounding the retorts andin contact therewith in six thousand times more condensed condition than has hitherto been practised very much more rapid results in carbonization can be secured. This effect is due in part to the fact that the storage of the heat in this manner substantiallyprevents or greatly reduces the drop in temperature of the retort when a fresh charge is introduced, the heat stored in the refractory mass providing a supply which the products of combustion alone could not provide owing to the relatively expanded condition of the products. In the accompanying drawings in which the embodiment of my said invention is illustrated: Figure 1 is a longitudinal vertical section through one end of a bench of gas retorts taken on the dotted line II in Fig. 2, the upper portion of the view cutting through the gas retorts and the lower portion through the walls between the vertical rows of retorts and through the combustion chamber; Fig. 2, a vertical cross section on the dotted line II-II in Fig. 1; Fig. 3, a vertical cross section on the dotted line III-III in Fig. 1; and Fig. 4, a detail perspective view of a portion of two retorts illustrating a form of blocks, and the man ner of assembling them to form the retorts and the cross walls.

As the problem of making gas from I of the individual blocks making up each sec- V with the sides of the walls, which take up and 9 the blocks. composing the cross walls.

The construction of the combustion chambers need not be particularly described inasmuch as it does not form any part of my present invention, and is or-may be any con structionin general or preferred, or may be modified or variedso far as my present in- 'vention' is concerned, which relates exclusively to the construction of the bench of retorts. vl Each retort is composed of a series of sec,- tions such as shown in Fig. 4 and each section is made up of a number of appropriately shaped blocks 9- of refractory material 7 so formed as to providea retort of the de-' sired cross-sectionaldesign. c It will be noted by an examination of Fig. 4- that the form tion may be varied in form to provide corner blocks, side blocks and other blocks of the required shape to form the complete arch, bottom and sides of the retort. Each block is substantially smooth upon one face and upon its opposite vface has a projecting flange 10, the flange of one block in each section being adapted to join with the respective flanges of the adjoining blocks so as to form a complete projecting flange surrounding the retort opening 2. It will thus be seen that the retorts are built up in this; manner with one section adjoining another section until the required length is secured and a retort is thus formed which is in itself a part' of the'bench structure, the blocks comprising the retorts in themselves constituting the transverse walls of the bench and the projecting flanges 10 being of such a length I as to provide the narrow vertical spaces 4 extending from top to bottom of the bench and Serving as fines for the products of combustion from the combustion chambers. These narrow spaces completely surroLmd each of said retorts and being very narrow, only about one or two inches in Width in the preferred form, the heat from the combustion chambers comes in contact said heat and store it in condensed condition and at proper temperatureimmediately sur rounding the retorts to which it is transferred from the solid refractory material, resulting in securing the highest desired temperature, within the retort from a considerably lower temperature on the outside than necessary under the old practice of transferring the heat direct from the gaseous products of combustion circulating in the wide spaces through the walls of the retorts around which it circulated. This becombustion considerably higher than the retort temperature, can be provided by a temperature more closely approaching that desired within the retort, thus decreasing the temperature of the products materially'with the obvious resultant advantages, this reduc tion in temperature, in some cases amounting to several hundred degrees. In addition to this advantageous result, another great advantage lies in the fact that through the storage of heat in the setting and the use of this heat for the purpose of heating the retort by conduction, the drop in temperature in the retort walls when a charge'is first inserted, will be greatly reduced if not practi cally eliminated, the heat within the refractory mass augmenting-that of the retort walls in preventing this drop, a feature which .isabsentwhere the retort walls are heated directly by the products of combus tion, the retort walls being comparatively thin and giving up their heat quickly; obviously the products of combustion are not adapted to augment this retort wall heat to any material extent, 'so that underfprior practice the result has been that the drop in temperature causesa material loss in time for completing carboniz'ationof the charge through the necessity of a restoration of the temperature of the retort walls. Asheretofore pointed out, the vertical spaces or channels are relatively narrow as compared with the thickness of the walls which form the spaces, this being clearly indicated in Fig. 1 of the drawings, a preferred width of the spaces or channels (the distance between adjacent blocks lengthwise of the retort) being one or two inches, the result being that more than one complete channel is formedin a lineal foot of retort length, the distance from the center of one wall to the center of the next wall lengthwise of the retort being preferably less than twelve inches. In other words, the totality of distances between walls on a line intersecting the spaces and walls at right angles is less than the totality of Wall thickness lengthwise of the retort.v A bench of retorts is thus provided composed of amass of closely associated refractory material having numerous" narrow spaces extending vertically and at narrow intervals from top to bottom thereof, which mass is adapted to take up the heat from the products of combustion very rapidly and condense it around the retorts available for most rapid transference and at low tempera ture to the coal. 7 l

It is well understood that heat is transferable from gases to solids by contact with the solids. Therefore, because of the large mass of the refractory material and the narrow fiues through it and through which the gases containing the heat units must pass, the maximum possible of said heat units must practically come in contact therewith and be taken up thereby. The

heat for driving the volatile matter from the coal will be transmitted chiefly from the solid refractory material surrounding the retorts rather than from the products of combustion as heretofore, and as it is a well known fact that the conductivity of the refractory material in this manner is much more rapid than from the products of combustion themselves, it will be seen that the efficiency of the apparatus is largely increased and great economy in its operation secured because of the fact that the heat units in the products of combustion are transferred to the coal in a much shorter time and at lower temperature than under the old construction. In other words, the heating of the retort wall, instead of being mainly by heat transference direct from the gaseous products of combustion, the heating of the retort itself is provided mainly by conduction, the direct transference to the retort being relatively small, the transference from these products being mainly to the blocks which form the vertical walls, the heat of which reaches the retort walls by conduction. The preponderance of heat transference to the retort walls through the vertical walls by conduction provides a more efficient and equable heating of the retort.

As will be seen from Figs. 2 and 3, each retort setting is provided by a vertical series of superposed blocks on each side of the retort opening, these openings being spaced apart by arches, also formed of appropriately shaped blocks.

What I claim is t 1. In a bench of gas retorts, a mass of refractory material having channels for the circulation of products of combustion extending on parallel planes intersecting the retorts at substantially right angles, said ing' greater than one, with the wall between adjacent channels of a width not less than the width of a channel.

3. In gas generating structures of the retort type, units of refractory material positioned to form parallel walls extending on planes intersecting the retorts at right angles and spaced apart in the direction of length of the retorts to form channels for the circulation of the products of combustion, the distance between the center lines of adjacent walls with the intervening channel being less than twelve inches, with the wall between adjacent channels of a width not less than the width of the channel.

4:. In gas generating structures of the retort type, appropriately-shaped blocks of refractory material assembled to form transverse walls with intervening spaces external of the retorts, said spaces forming individual non-communicating channels for the products of combustion, the distance between the center lines of adjacent walls being less than twelve inches, with the wall between adjacent channels of a Width not less than the width of a channel, and a combustion chamber in communication with the spaces.

In testimony whereof I ailix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

HENRY A. CARPENTER. lVitnesses:

W. G. Doom'r'rLE, F. E. GAITHER.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each,'by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, I). C. 

